The New Democrats are often considered as a progressive alternative to the Liberals and the Conservatives in Canadian politics. That’s the reason why die hard leftists with a limited choice in the political spectrum of British Columbia would vote for the NDP in the May 12 assembly election.

However, as the election date nears, leftists within the South Asian community and the mainstream must look into the range of issues that need to be seriously addressed by the NDP.

Human rights and freedoms is one of the areas in which the NDP needs to prove its strength, despite its claims of being socially progressive.

NDP leader Carole James has already come under sharp attack for her position on Zionism. The anti-war groups have criticized her for labeling anti-Zionism as "anti-Semitism." One interpretation of her statement is that she has essentially accused human rights groups who oppose Zionism of being racists.

The offended anti-war groups are asking her to apologize and have warned her not to take the support of the working class and their lobby for granted.

Similar feelings persist among progressive political activists within the South Asian community over the NDP’s position on several controversial matters. Since the NDP has a big following in the Indo-Canadian community, the party takes the support of progressive Indo Canadians for granted.

This is the reason why the NDP candidates, or the incumbent MLAs seeking reelection, don’t hesitate in going for support to Sikh separatists seeking an independent Khalistan, an imaginary theocratic homeland in India. This is because the Sikh separatist groups, who have their own temples with big congregations, can deliver votes.

But what about the progressives and the moderate Sikhs who don’t support an independent, theocratic state of Khalistan and all it implies for India?

Interestingly, two Punjabi NDP MLAs who attended a function in memory of Darshan Singh Canadian, a communist leader who was assassinated by the pro-Khalistan extremists in India, have repeatedly attended events organized by the pro-Khalistan management of the Dashmesh Durbar Sikh temple in Surrey.

I remember how concerned Carole James was when the Federal NDP had decided to join hands with the Bloc Quebecois to form an alternative government in Ottawa. She had termed BQ as separatists during a South Asian media conference. So are the separatists of an other country not a problem?

The NDP must consider the concerns of the wider South Asian community in its bid for votes at the ballot box.